Consciousness-Based Education - Maharishi University of ...

preventing disasters and distressthat during this unique state of deep rest, brain waves become more coherentbetween cortical areas, accumulated effects of stress are removed,and the nervous system is revitalized (Alexander, Robinson, Orme-Johnson, Schneider, & Walton, 1995; Barnes & Orme-Johnson, 2006;Dillbeck & Orme-Johnson, 1987; Jevning, Wallace, & Biedebach, 1992;Orme-Johnson, Barnes, & Schneider, 2011; Travis & Arenander, 2006;Travis, Haaga, Hagelin, Tanner, Nidich, et al., 2009; Travis & Shear,2010; Walton & Levitsky, 2003; Walton, Schneider, Nidich, Salerno,Nordstrom, et al., 2002).The TM-Sidhi program is an advanced practice that develops theability to think and act from the level of Transcendental Consciousness,bringing greater achievement in activity with less effort and strain.Practiced in a group, the TM-Sidhi program appears to produce aninflu ence of coherence and positivity in collective consciousness (theconsciousness of society as a whole) which is many times greater thanthat produced by the same number of persons practic ing the TranscendentalMeditation technique in separate locations (see below).Ability of the Transcendental Meditation and TM-Sidhi program toreduce individual stress: Because psy chosocial stress produces negativepsychophysiological effects that contribute to technological disastersand interfere with any emergency management, a program with provenability to reduce stress would be a valuable addition to civil defensestrategies. The most natural way to relieve stress may be through profoundrest to the body. Several types of evidence indicate that the levelof rest gained during the Transcendental Meditation technique is distinctfrom simple eyes-closed rest or sleep, and also that the effects areboth more profound and longer lasting than those produced by otherrestful behaviors. For example, a statistical meta-analysis of 32 differentphysiological studies found that the Transcendental Meditationprogram reduced somatic arousal significantly more than eyes closedrest, as measured by decreases in basal skin conductance, respiratoryrate and plasma lactate (a stress-related metabolite) (Dillbeck & Orme-Johnson, 1987). This meta-analysis also found differences persistingoutside the practice: compared to controls, those who had practiced theTranscendental Meditation technique for some time exhib ited significantlylower baseline levels for heart rate, spontaneous skin resistancechanges, res piratory rate and plasma lactate, suggesting that lowered503